Don’t believe the racial profiling of Kapampangans as “dugong aso” (traitors)—we are, in fact, a race of patriots. The first native of these islands to die fighting for freedom was a Kapampangan, Tarik Soliman, back in 1571. And it was a Kapampangan (Luis Taruc) who organized the biggest guerrilla movement (HUKBALAHAP) during World War II.
In the 370 years between Tarik and Taruc, there was Francisco Maniago of Mexico town who led the Kapampangan Revolt in 1660; Jose Alejandrino of Arayat and Valentin Ventura of Bacolor who helped Rizal publish El Filibusterismo in Europe; Aurelio Tolentino of Guagua who helped Andres Banifacio create the Katipunan (Bonifacio himself had Kapampngan roots, in Masantol); Gen. Servillano Aquino of Concepcion, Gen. Maximino Hizon of Mexico, Gen. Francisco Makabulos of La Paz, Gen. Jose Alejandrino of Arayat, Gen. Mamerto Natividad of Bacolor and other generals who helped Aguinaldo carry out the Philippine Revolution.
Even Kapampangan playwrights and poets took up arms against the Spaniards and Americans—Juan Crisostomo Soto, Felix Galura, Mariano Pabalan Byron, Modesto Joaquin and Francisco Liongson all from Bacolor, as well as Monico Mercado of Sasmuan.
Capt. Isabelo del Rosario of Angeles famously warned against the Americans’ duplicity: “Den ali la sasaup, sasakup la!” (They’re not here to help, but to invade!) and was hanged for it.
The common folks also had their separate rebellion in the countryside, led by cult leaders Gabino Cortes of Apalit and Felipe Salvador of Baliuag (Gabino’s cousin).
Pedro Abad Santos of San Fernando founded the Socialist Party of the Philippines, whose ideology inspired the long-suffering peasants and workers to rise against their landlords and fueled the labor movements (to be led later by another Kapampangan, Felixberto Olalia of Bacolor), including the Aguman ding Maldang Talapagobra (AMT) which turned into the grassroots network of Luis Taruc’s HUKBALAHAP when the Japanese invaded.
Kapampangan women spurned their traditional role as caring Florence Nightingales and turned into Joans of Arc, leading troops in combat (examples: Felipa Culala of Candaba, Remedios Gomez of Mexico and Simeona Punsalan of San Simon). After the war, HUKBALAHAP morphed into the HMB (Hukbong Mapagpalaya ng Bayan) and continued its armed resistance. The revived Communist Party of the Philippines was founded by Jose Ma. Sison whose mother was from Mexico town; the Party’s armed forces, the New People’s Army (NPA), was founded by another Kapampangan, Bernabe Buscayno of Capas. On the student front, Nilo Tayag of Porac founded the militant group Kabataang Makabayan (KM), whose protests were one of the reasons Marcos declared martial law.
Even the Macabebes ((Voluntarios de Macabebe during the Spanish Period and Macabebe Scouts during the American Period) that non-Kapampangans unfairly describe as history’s traitors did what they did out of vengeance (because Aguinaldo’s troops had ordered the execution of their hero and cabalen Andres Bonifacio and later the burning of their town and the massacre their town mates). And many of the latter-day Macabebe Scouts were absorbed into the Philippine Scouts who valiantly fought the Japanese during the Fall of Bataan in 1942.